RESEARCH ARTICLEThe Place of International Human Resource.docx

RESEARCH ARTICLE
The Place of International Human Resource
Management in International Business
Denice Welch • Ingmar Björkman
Received: 1 January 2014 / Revised: 5 May 2014 / Accepted: 27
August 2014 /
Published online: 28 October 2014
� Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014
Abstract This article addresses the issue of whether
International Human
Resource Management (IHRM) is disconnected from other
International Business
(IB) studies. A content analysis was conducted of 383 articles
published in five main
international business journals used by IHRM scholars as
outlets for their work over
a 21 year time span. We classified the articles into two streams
of IHRM research:
international assignment management and what we term MNC-
related research.
These streams were found to be given almost equal research

attention, developing in
tandem across the time period examined. A thematic analysis of
articles within each
stream facilitated the identification of areas receiving the most
research concen-
tration, those with partial attention, and topics yet to be
explored. A third stream of
articles we designated as non-empirical allowed consideration
of theoretical
developments within the field. This assessment demonstrates
how IHRM is devel-
oping a stronger connection with more general IB research.
Keywords Content analysis � Field evolution � Multinational
HRM �
Non-expatriate workforce � International assignees �
Expatriates
1 Introduction
How to effectively manage the expatriate process has been a
core research question
in International Human Resource Management (IHRM). Sparrow
(2009, p. 4)
D. Welch (&)
Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne,
Melbourne, Australia

e-mail: [email protected]
I. Björkman
Aalto University School of Business, Helsinki, Finland
123
Manag Int Rev (2015) 55:303–322
DOI 10.1007/s11575-014-0226-3
http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1007/s11575-014-
0226-3&domain=pdf
http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1007/s11575-014-
0226-3&domain=pdf
suggests this focus may be attributed to the somewhat
prescribed nature of human
resource management that directs research to ‘‘issue-driven
concerns’’ faced by
human resource practitioners in multinational companies. But
IHRM scholars
generally consider that the field has moved on from its earlier
preoccupation with
expatriation. As the authors of several overviews have
concluded, the IHRM field
has rapidly developed into an area concerned with the wider
range of people-related
issues in multinational firms (see e.g., Ferner 2009; Schuler and

Tarique 2007;
Sparrow 2009; Stahl et al. 2012).
Broadening the scope of research enquiry, though, has resulted
in a blurring of
the definitional boundary of what constitutes IHRM. As
research has extended into
broader multinational management issues, such as the transfer
of HRM practices
into subsidiary operations, some scholars have suggested that
IHRM overlaps with,
or is subsumed into, the related research areas of comparative
human resource
management and cross-cultural management (see e.g., Harzing
and Pennington
2011; Sparrow 2009). However, based on definitions used in
key texts and
handbooks, it would seem that the prevailing consensus is that
IHRM is concerned
with all the issues related to the management of people in the
MNC context
(Dowling et al. 2013; Evans et al. 2011; Stahl et al. 2012); and
thus falls under the
international business research umbrella.

A lack of clarity as to what delineates IHRM makes it difficult
to explain to
‘outsiders’ what IHRM involves as a scientific field. For the
broader international
business (IB) scientific community, IHRM may appear to be a
field preoccupied
with expatriate management and its related activities—
particularly expatriate
adjustment. As IHRM scholars, we have heard IB colleagues
comment that ‘IHRM
equals expatriate management’. Of more concern perhaps is the
identification by the
current co-editors of the Journal of International Business
Research (JIBS), of what
they term a disconnection of IHRM from other IB studies
(Cantwell and Brannen
2011). While IHRM scholars may dispute these observations, it
does reflect how the
field may be perceived within the IB research community. The
challenge is to
demonstrate that IHRM scholars are engaged with broader IB-
related issues; that the
growing body of IHRM research findings make important
contributions to

answering what Peng (2004) describes is the overarching IB
research question:
What determines the success and failure of internationalising
firms.
One way of meeting this challenge is to map the field of IHRM.
As Williams and
Plouffe (2007, p. 408) comment: ‘‘Systematically analysing the
state of knowledge
development in an academic field is a critical step in any
discipline’s growth and
maturity’’. We therefore conducted a content analysis of IHRM
publications in five
journals considered to be the major IB outlets for those engaged
in IHRM-related
research. The objective was to determine research streams and
topic areas to provide
a general thematic overview of where research interest has lain
over a selected time
period. The resulting database of 383 articles constituted a
research map covering a
span of 21 years, broken into three time periods: 1990–1996;
1997–2003 and
2004–2010. Through an analysis of the resulting database, we
are able to provide

reasonable evidence that IHRM research does not equal
expatriate management,
though that remains an important stream of inquiry. Instead,
IHRM is becoming
multi-level in focus and draws on different disciplines and
methodological
304 D. Welch, I. Björkman
123
approaches to explain the contribution of people management to
the success of the
internationalising firm.
In addition, our results reveal what could be likened to a mosaic
of the IHRM
field. Building on the mosaic metaphor, our content analysis
depicts where the
picture is strongly visible (the field’s research concentration);
where it is merely
incomplete outlines (areas that have received partial attention);
and blank patches
awaiting the attention of the artist (areas that have been ignored
or neglected).
While we deliberately avoid setting out a prescriptive research

agenda, we draw
attention to areas where IHRM research can make a stronger
contribution to IB
research in general.
2 Methodology
As explained above, our purpose was to map the field of IHRM.
A content analysis
was therefore deemed the appropriate methodology, rather than
a meta-analysis or a
literature review. Meta-analysis is a technique that combines of
the results of
comparable studies to produce a quantitative estimate of overall
effect of a
phenomenon, and to provide a single conclusion with greater
statistical power
(Borenstein et al. 2009; Rosenthal and DiMatteo 2001). A
narrative or critical
literature review is useful if one is concerned with theoretical
development or
evaluation, or to provide an overview of research into a
particular topic (Baumeister
and Leary 1997). In contrast, content analysis methodology
allows scholars to

objectively analyse published text in a systematic way to build a
picture of a field’s
accrued knowledge (Williams and Plouffe 2007).
Content analysis has been applied in many ways across a variety
of academic
disciplines and research traditions (Duriau et al. 2007).
Although there is no single
set of rules or protocols, there are guidelines regarding the
creation and definition of
categories, coding of data, and assessing reliability and face
validity (Downe-
Wambolt 1992). It is more than frequency counts. It involves
thematic coding of
text content to structure meanings and trends inferred from
open-ended data
(Graneheim and Lundman 2004). Content analysis thus provides
the appropriate
scientific tool to obtain ‘‘a systematic, qualitative and
quantitative description of the
manifest content of literature in an area’’ (Li and Cavusgil
1995, p. 251).
As we now detail, our content analysis involved several steps:
Journal selection
and time period; compilation of the database; and article

categorisation and thematic
coding. Aspects related to reliability and validity of the
generated database and the
coding process we followed are explained for each of these
steps.
2.1 Journal Selection and Time Period
Journal selection was predicated on our purpose to
systematically build a picture of
the IHRM field’s accrued knowledge. We did not seek to
determine the impact of
any specific article; nor try to establish the field’s most
influential authors. Rather,
we sought to establish patterns of how IHRM researchers over
time have
contributed to our understanding of what determines success or
failure as a firm
The Place of International Human Resource Management 305
123
internationalises. Thus, we confined our selection to IB
journals. We began with the
only extant published ranking of IHRM outlets, compiled by
Caligiuri (1999) that

placed the International Journal of Human Resource
Management (IJHRM), the
Journal of International Business Studies (JIBS) and
Management International
Review (MIR) as the top three international journals used as
outlets for IHRM
publications. To give additional breadth and depth to our
mapping exercise, we
added Journal of World Business and International Business
Review, which
consistently feature among the highest ranking IB journals; for
instance, they ranked
second and third among the IB journals (after JIBS) in the 2010
ISI Web of
Knowledge citation index. While we acknowledge that our
search is not exhaustive,
it is comprehensive enough to provide a representative body of
IHRM publications,
and is similar to that taken by Li and Cavusgil (1995) in their
assessment of
international marketing over a decade. This has been supported
by a recent analysis
of expatriate research that found that the field was ‘‘still being
covered by a low

number of different journals’’ (Dabic et al. 2013, p. 7). Details
relating to the five
journals are presented in the Appendix.
IJHRM is considered by scholars in the field of IHRM research
as the ‘leading
outlet’ (Mayrhofer and Reichel 2009, p. 41). It was first
published in 1990 and it
seemed appropriate to make that calendar year our starting
point. Thus, the analysis
covers 21 years, finishing the review of each journal at the last
issue of 2010. Three
time periods of 7 years each are used: 1990–1996; 1997–2003,
and 2004–2010. We
recognize that the choice of time period was a somewhat
arbitrary one, as was the
division of the 21 years into three equally long periods (see
Furrer et al. 2008, for a
similar approach). The time periods and chronological
presentation of our dataset of
articles reflect the mapping purpose.
2.2 Compilation of the Database
The next step was to compile the articles that would form our
databank. While there

are several computer-aided text analysis software programs
available, we consid-
ered that a manual search was appropriate for our purposes. The
five journals were
analysed to extract out only those articles that dealt with IHRM
topics. Each article
had to meet the IHRM definition in general use: All the issues
related to the
management of people in the MNC context (Björkman et al.
2012; Evans et al.
2011; Dowling et al. 2013; Poole 1990). This excluded articles
dealing with
comparative analyses of HRM and employee relations in
different countries; and
those dealing with cross-cultural management issues in a
comparative, or national,
sense.
In content analysis, ‘‘reproducibility is arguably the most
important interpretation
of reliability’’ (Krippendorff 2004, p. 414). Each author
performed a separate
examination across the five journals and the resulting lists
compared. Differences

were then discussed between the two authors to reach intercoder
agreement. To
enhance reproducibility, we used a third, independent coder. A
colleague with
teaching and consulting experience as well as a doctorate in
IHRM independently
examined the five journals using the same IHRM definition to
identify relevant
articles.
123
The use of statistical coefficients to determine inter-coder
reliability was
considered. However, we were concerned with making
inferences from the manifest
trend data as to the evolution of the field—not to test
hypotheses, or determine the
relative weight of the IHRM field within IB in general or the
chosen journals in
particular (cf., Furrer et al. 2008). Our purpose was to build, in
a systematic way, an
overall picture of a field of study. That meant we were dealing

with a large unit of
analysis—the field of IHRM over a time period of 21 years—
and this carried the
potential of compromised inter-coding reliability coefficients
(Downe-Wambolt
1992, see also Krippendorff 2004). We were also cognizant of
the danger of what
Rosenthal and DiMatteo (2001, p. 68) call ‘‘high-tech
statistication’’; that is, using a
technique that lends ‘‘an impressive air of sophistication but
may be massively
inappropriate’’. These limitations and constraints informed our
decision not to use
statistical coefficients.
Intercoder agreement provided a measure of consistency with
regard to the
selection of relevant articles (Lombard et al. 2002). Credibility
and trustworthiness
of results was a primary concern and the use of an independent
arbiter provided an
appropriate way of checking inter-coder reliability through
reproducibility. The
resulting lists of articles across the five journals were
compared. Differences were

discussed until agreement was reached that all selected articles
conformed to our
IHRM definition. By the end of the coder agreement process,
ten articles had been
added and six deleted. The authors removed a further two
articles from the data set.
These dealt with the teaching of IHRM and thus were treated as
outliers for the
purpose of our mapping exercise. The final result was a total of
383 articles that
conformed to our definition.
2.3 Article Categorization
In content analysis, category schemes are defined by the
researcher, based on the
research purpose, and the knowledge and experience of the
authors (Downe-
Wambolt 1992). Article categorization involved two rounds:
First, sorting into
research streams; and second, thematic analysis within these
streams.
2.3.1 Round 1: Research Streams
Both authors separately sorted articles into two distinct research
streams: Those

relating to empirical research on international assignment
management; and those
related to broader HRM issues in multinational corporations
(MNCs). Our two
categories are broadly reflected in a Delphi study of IB research
topics: Global
organisations’ staffing; and expatriate management (Griffith et
al. 2008). We are
cognizant that not all articles are easily classified (see Clark et
al. 1999). The
independent researcher’s assessment provided a useful check-
point for the few
articles in contention, and again coder agreement was reached
through discussion.
As the round progressed, we also formed a third category:
Theoretical/conceptual/
field review (henceforth: ‘non-empirical’) articles. These were
articles that dealt
with efforts to develop general frameworks or models; or
reviewed the field of
IHRM more generally.
123

Research Stream 1: International assignment management
Articles in this stream
dealt with the expatriation process both for the international
assignee and associated
stakeholders such as spouse/partner, family members, and dual
career couples.
Classification was relatively straightforward. Articles mostly
were self-defining in
that they clearly dealt with HR activities related to assignment
management, and
these could more easily be broken down according to topic or
theme. The most
difficult category was that of expatriate performance given that
the perspective
could be the MNC as well as the individual, and agreement
again was reached
through discussion. We used the level of analysis—the
international assignee—to
separate out those specifically dealing with individual
employees (and their
accompanying partners/family), including articles on expatriate
failure.

Given that we were primarily concerned with determining
research concentra-
tion, we did not make any distinction in our classification
between articles dealing
with various categories of assignees. The term ‘international
assignee’ was used to
encompass articles dealing with the broad range: ‘Traditional’
expatriates sent on
foreign assignments; and employees on ‘alternative’
arrangements like short-term
assignments, self-initiated assignments, returnee assignments,
international com-
muter assignments, rotational assignments, and virtual
assignments (Evans et al.
2011).
Research Stream 2: MNC-related topics The second category
covered the broad
range of HRM issues arising from global expansion (staffing
policies or HR
practices in foreign subsidiaries, for instance), and the HR
effects of corporate
practices. Articles related to the staffing of international
operations (with expatriates
or local employees) as well as the purposes and roles of

different employee groups
(such as expatriates as transferees of knowledge) were included.
This separation
also was applied to compensation. There were two articles that
dealt with
compensation at the corporate headquarters level (for example,
designing a global
compensation system) and so were classified as MNC-related
articles. Again,
categorization differences were resolved by discussion between
the authors.
Research stream 3: Non-empirical. This research stream
consisted of the
remainder of the identified articles; that is, non-empirical
articles. As we discuss
later, the combining of review and theoretical articles into a
separate category
allowed us to obtain a picture of how the field was evolving
from its early
atheoretical characteristic (Björkman et al. 2012) and its
contribution to IB theory
more generally.
2.3.2 Results of Round 1

Table 1 presents the result of the first round of analysis. We
found that 40 % of total
articles dealt with international assignments; the proportion
remaining relatively
constant across the time periods. The proportion of MNC-
related IHRM articles
increased steadily over time, reaching 42 % in 2004–2010. The
non-empirical
research stream comprised 21 % of the total data base but
dropped from 29 % in
1990–1996 to 15 % in 2004–2010.
Given its position as a primary outlet for IHRM scholars, it was
not surprising
that, overall, there were more articles published in IJHRM (62
%) than in JIBS
123
(12 %), MIR (6 %), JWB (16 %) and IBR (4 %). IJHRM
increasingly became the
dominant outlet of assignment-related research (77 % of the
articles published
during 2004–2010, up from 48 % in 1990–1996). Research in

Stream 1 has become
an increasingly mature area of study and, as we will later
discuss, many of the more
recent papers only offer marginal contributions to the literature.
It is therefore
natural that such papers stand a better chance of being
published in the more
narrowly and functionally focused IJHRM.
The analysis also shows the growth of the field. The number of
articles more than
doubled from 1990–1996 to 1997–2003, increasing during
2004–2010 to more than
three times that of 1990–1996. This can partly be attributed to
the overall interest in
IB as a scientific field of endeavour, as reflected in the
incremental growth in the
number of issues per volume in four of our five journals (see
Appendix). The
increase in articles published in JWB beginning in the year
1997 is noteworthy. The
rebranding and increased focus of JWB on ‘‘challenges facing
global managers’’
(Luthans and Slocum 1997, p. 1), including HRM, did indeed
lead to a change in the

kind of articles published, and special issues devoted to IHRM
topics such as global
talent management and boundaryless careers. The growth of IB
itself and the multi-
disciplinary nature of the other four journals inevitably mean
authors from any
research area face a highly competitive publication
environment.
2.3.3 Round 2: Thematic Coding
Our second purpose was to identify, over the relevant
timeframe, areas of research
focus due to the growing diversification of the IHRM field.
Thus, Round 2 involved
Table 1 IHRM research streams
Period Stream IJHRM JIBS MIR JWB IBR Total
1990–1996 International assignments 14 9 5 0 1 29 (43 %)
MNC-related 9 7 2 0 1 19 (28 %)
Non-empirical 12 3 1 3 1 20 (29 %)
(35) (19) (8) (3) (3) (68)
MNC-related 30 3 3 8 3 47 (38 %)

Non-empirical 19 1 5 8 1 34 (27 %)
(74) (7) (11) (25) (7) (124)
MNC-related 51 9 3 15 3 81 (42 %)
Non-empirical 15 4 0 8 1 28 (15 %)
(129) (18) (5) (33) (6) (191)
Total 238 44 24 61 16 383
International assignments 43 % 32 % 42 % 31 % 37.5 % 40 %
MNC-related 38 % 43 % 33 % 38 % 44 % 38 %
Non-empirical 19 % 18 % 25 % 26 % 19 % 21 %
Percentages rounded
123
a thematic analysis of articles in Research Streams 1 and 2.
Each article was
scanned for key words, with both authors using an agreed a
priori coding system. In
content analysis, categories can be concept-driven or data-

driven. As we were
concerned with manifest rather than latent content, we used
concept-driven
categories, based on our combined knowledge of the IHRM
literature, and in line
with the topics included in recent IHRM textbooks (Dowling et
al. 2013; Evans
et al. 2011; Harzing and Pennington 2011) and two recent
IHRM research
handbooks (Stahl et al. 2012; Sparrow 2009). Our independent
colleague’s
assessment again provided a useful check, and differences
discussed to reach
agreement.
International assignment management themes Based on the
literature, eight
specific topics were identified: Adjustment and failure,
repatriation, expatriate
career, spouse/partner/family, female/gender, expatriate
performance (including
performance appraisal), selection and cross-cultural training,
and compensation.
Articles that dealt with international assignment management in
a general sense

(such as willingness to accept an assignment; expatriate
characteristics) or from a
specific country or group perspective (Taiwanese, New Zealand,
etc.) were dealt
with as a separate category (coded ‘Other’), as they covered
more than one focal
topic. Thus, nine categories were delineated for this research
stream.
Table 2 presents the nine themes, broken into time periods, in
order of frequency
to illustrate research concentration. Adjustment emerged as the
clearly dominant
topic (34 %) across all journals and time periods. Apart from
those specifically
dealing with the topic, our thematic analysis found that in-
country (culturally
related) adjustment was a consistent topic in articles dealing
with female
expatriates; with spouse/partner and other family members; and
with repatriates.
Adjustment was also included as one of the issues discussed in
many of the more
general and country-specific articles.

More emphasis in recent years has been placed on the
performance of
international assignees (14 % overall). This is a topic area of
obvious academic
and practical interest where, so far, there is less conclusive
research evidence.
Across the time period, there was growth in research on the
subsequent effects of
international assignments: On the person’s career; repatriation;
and to a lesser
Table 2 International assignment themes
Theme 1990–1996 1997–2003 2004–2010 Total
Adjustment 10 15 27 52
Performance 8 3 10 21
Selection/training 1 7 10 18
Career 2 5 9 16
Repatriation 3 6 6 15
Female/gender 1 4 6 11
Other 0 1 9 10
Spouse/family 3 1 5 9
Compensation 1 1 0 2

123
extent, on the expatriate’s spouse/family. The area that has
received consistently
low attention has been compensation (only 2 articles), which is
curious given the
emphasis that tends to be placed on financial outcomes as a
motive to accept an
assignment.
MNC-related themes The eclectic nature of this research stream
made thematic
coding a somewhat more challenging task. We first sorted
articles into three levels
of analysis: The macro context; the MNC; and the
subsidiary/unit level. Both
researchers then conferred to reach agreement on thematic
coding to arrive at seven
categories across these three broad areas: MNC macro context;
Headquarters HRM
issues, staffing policies and practices, expatriate roles and
purposes (MNC level);

subsidiary HRM; transfer of HR practices; HRM and operation
modes (subsidiary/
unit level).
As not all authors specifically stated the level of analysis used,
the classification
of some articles required additional dialogue to reach intercoder
agreement. Others
were more straight-forward. For example, global talent
management articles were
more clearly focused on Headquarters HRM activities (see
Farndale et al. 2010)
while articles dealing with staffing policies and practices
sometimes included the
subsidiary unit level. Indeed, the subsidiary level of analysis
posed the most
challenge in our coding process as it warranted careful
differentiation of IHRM
articles from comparative HRM/IM and cross-cultural
management (e.g., Kwon
et al. 2010; Khilji 2002). The nuanced nature of the exercise
reinforced our decision
to conduct the analysis manually.
Table 3 presents our results, again in decreasing order of
frequency. The MNC

level contained the highest number of articles, of which the
dominant category was
that labelled ‘Headquarters HRM issues’. This category
comprised articles relating
to corporate HR policies, practices, activities and systems, and
the MNC’s
designated HR function in charge of HRM in the MNC.
Considerably more of the
‘Headquarters HRM issues’ research has focused on the
configuration and effects of
corporate HR policies and (intended) practices than on the HR
function as an actor.
A sub-theme of this group was auditing and return of investment
from international
assignments in the MNC (a total of three articles).
Articles relating to staffing policies and practices addressed
issues related to the
use of MNC Parent Country Nationals, Host Country Nationals
and Third Country
Nationals; developing international or global managers; and
using alternative
Table 3 MNC-related themes
Theme 1990–1996 1997–2003 2004–2010 Total

Headquarters HRM 6 18 29 53
Staffing policies and practices 6 4 17 27
HR practices transfer 4 8 15 27
Subsidiary HRM 1 8 10 19
International assignee roles 2 7 4 13
HRM and operational modes 0 2 6 8
MNC context 0 0 0 0
123
international assignment forms. Articles concerning the purpose
of international
assignments and the roles played by expatriates were separated
out from Research
Stream 1 as they took an organisational level approach (e.g.,
Harzing 2001). These
articles examined either the use of expatriates from a MNC
perspective and/or
attempted to assess the return from, or effects of, such
assignments. Some articles

built upon the early interest in issues related to control and
coordination of MNCs,
following the work of Edström and Galbraith (1977). A distinct
group of articles
analysed the effect of staff transfers on social capital
development in the MNC and/
or knowledge transfer across units and/or individuals (such as
Minbaeva et al.
2003).
Three themes were concerned with the subsidiary/unit level of
analysis: HRM
and operation modes; HR practices transfer; and subsidiary
HRM. A rapidly
growing category of articles examined HRM in different FDI
modes of operation
such as international mergers and acquisitions; joint ventures,
and alliances. The
subsidiary HRM category included articles dealing with specific
HRM issues
pertaining to the individual unit. The final level of analysis—
context—received the
least research attention. In the whole database, only two articles
dealt with the MNC
context—both at the non-empirical level—and so were excluded

from this research
stream.
Non-empirical articles As mentioned above, separating out
articles that
comprised either IHRM field overviews (see e.g., Dowling
1999), conceptual
frameworks (Bolino 2007), and broader literature reviews (such
as Tarique and
Schuler 2010) provided a valuable snapshot in terms of the
overall status of IHRM
as a scientific field. The resulting pattern across this category
demonstrates the
concerted efforts of IHRM scholars to move beyond the
traditional narrow focus on
expatriation. Table 4 shows the breakdown into sub-categories.
The majority
(51 %) were theoretical or review pieces concerning MNC-
related issues; with
35 % considering aspects of international assignment
management.
The database was further examined to classify articles by
research method
employed. Three categories were used: Quantitative, qualitative,
and mixed

method. The composite results from the five journals are shown
in Table 5. Not
unexpectedly, quantitative articles dominated. The dearth of
articles across all five
journals and time periods that specifically dealt with research
methodology itself
was noticeable though, in conformity with academic convention,
authors would
report on empirical limitations and other research issues
pertinent to their own
work.
Table 4 Theory/field themes
Theme 1990–1996 1997–2003 2004–2010 Total
MNC-related 10 19 13 42
International assignments 6 12 9 27
Field overview 4 2 4 10
Literature review 0 1 1 2
Methodology 0 1 1 2
123

When breaking down these results across the five journals, we
found IJHRM the
most eclectic—publishing articles covering the full spectrum,
though there was a
bias toward quantitative (113 quantitative; 61 qualitative and 15
mixed). The
methodological spread continued over the three time periods.
The eclecticism may
support the popular view of this journal as the ‘home’ of IHRM
research. JIBS
maintained a bias toward quantitative articles, publishing only
one qualitative-based
article and one using mixed methods across the three time
periods. Likewise, there
was only one non-quantitative article published in MIR. IBR
showed a swing
towards a more eclectic methodology in the 2004–2010
timeframe. Of the five
empirical articles, two were quantitative, two qualitative, and
one mixed method. As
the number of IHRM articles increased in JWB, so did the
spread of research
methods to the extent that in the period 2004–2010, there were

more qualitative (15)
than quantitative (8) articles published, along with two using
mixed methods.
3 Discussion
We consider two main issues relating to Research Stream 1
(international
assignment management): The concentration on expatriate
adjustment as a research
topic to the detriment of other areas; and the wisdom of a
continued preoccupation
with a relatively small cohort of MNC employees. We address
these issues before
turning to consider the implications arising from Research
Streams 2 and 3.
The dominance of expatriate adjustment Cultural adjustment has
long been
recognized as an important aspect of on-assignment
performance and of concern to
MNC management, given the high maintenance cost of this
staffing strategy. For
example, many of the adjustment papers we reviewed examined
some aspect of the
Black et al. (1991) framework; a concentration reflected in a
meta-analysis of this

model by Bhaskar-Shrninivas et al. (2005). However, it could be
argued that we
have reached the stage of diminishing returns from research on
expatriate
adjustment. Indeed, the increased number of country-specific
expatriate articles
we examined makes only small, somewhat marginal,
contributions to our
understanding of the adjustment process; suggesting we have
almost reached
empirical saturation.
As Takeuchi (2010) critiques, expatriate performance research
has largely
neglected the effects of assignments on other stakeholders; such
as family members,
host country nationals, and parent country nationals. The use of
adjustment as an
explanatory variable for expatriate performance and turnover is
dangerous if it
Table 5 Research methods employed
Approach 1990–1996 1997–2003 2010 Total
Quantitative 34 63 94 191

Qualitative 8 25 53 86
Mixed method 3 5 14 22
123
blinds us from seeking other potential explanations; and may be
likened to the
Drunkard’s Search: Taking the easier, well-lit path of scholarly
inquiry (Brewster
1999; McKenna et al. 2008). Moreover, continuing to devote
research time to
expatriate adjustment for marginal benefit carries the danger of
reinforcing the
perception that IHRM equals expatriate management, or that the
field is an
extension of cross-cultural management.
Preoccupation with a small cohort Recent developments—such
as the launch of
a dedicated outlet, the Journal of Global Mobility—suggest that
international
assignment management research is likely to continue (see e.g.,
Lazarova et al.

2010; Takeuchi 2010; Shaffer et al. 2012). But we question
whether this focus is
warranted. The recent work on different types of assignments
shifts attention from
senior management to a broader cohort of international
assignees, but it maintains
an emphasis on a select group. It is demonstrably clear that
international assignees
constitute only a fraction of a MNC’s total global workforce,
yet there has been
relatively limited work regarding the HR management of local
employees working
for MNCs. Likewise, while there is merit in the work on global
talent management
(see e.g., Collings and Mellahi 2009; Mäkelä et al. 2010), it can
be similarly
criticized. Dabic et al. (2013) reached the same conclusion; that
there needs to be a
broader focus if the expatriate research area is to progress.
3.1 Research Stream 2: MNC-Related Topics
The diversity of the MNC-related stream reveals there are a
burgeoning number of
articles dealing with people issues beyond the confines of
expatriate management.

Given the current stage of development of the field of IHRM, it
is not surprising that we
find a concentration of work at the multinational and subsidiary
levels of analysis.
Though not specifically expressed by the relevant authors of
articles in this research
stream, some respond to what Wright and van de Voorde (2009)
see as a need to
analyse HRM issues across organizational levels (see e.g.,
Myloni et al. 2007; Reiche
2007; Sayim 2010). We also identified three theoretical
frameworks linking IHRM
activities with broader organizational and contextual factors
(Harvey et al. 2001; Kim
and Gray 2005; Schuler et al. 1993); and several field reviews
(such as Collings et al.
2007; Stroh and Caligiuri 1998). We turn now to examining the
implications of our
findings across the three levels of analysis we identified in the
MNC-related stream.
MNC context A large number of studies in the general IB
literature have
examined the way in which institutional factors (including
political-legal, the

economic system, the educational system, and the forms and
values associated with
these) and cultural factors influence an MNC’s global
operations. Further, the
question of the influence of MNCs on the environments in
which they are operating
has been vigorously debated both in the IB literature and in the
more public domain.
By its very nature, examination of how IHRM influences and is
influenced by the
global environment provides a strong linkage to international
business. However,
there has been relatively little IHRM scholarly interest in
investigating global and
home country factors influencing HRM policies and practices in
MNCs (for an
exception, see Pudelko and Harzing 2007) and even less in
examining how MNCs
through their HRM practices and systems influence the societies
in which they
123

operate. It is perhaps this neglect that has given rise to the
perception that IHRM is
disconnected from the wider IB community.
MNC level This level of analysis has received the most research
concentration
across the three time periods. However, it is perhaps somewhat
telling that the
central ‘actor’—the HR function—has not been front and centre.
Articles we
categorized as ‘headquarters’ HRM’—the area receiving the
most research attention
at this level—generally dealt with corporate HR policies,
practices, activities and
systems. Over the time period we investigated¸ only three
articles clearly addressed
aspects of the corporate HR function in MNCs (Martin and
Beaumont 2001;
Novicevic and Harvey 2001; Scullion and Starkey 2000). While
HR managers are
commonly the respondents in the empirical work we reviewed,
little is known about
the roles HR managers play in the planning, delivery, and
monitoring of HR

activities—whether at MNC headquarters, in regional centres,
and in subsidiaries.
This also means that there is a lack of understanding of how the
HR departments
contribute to organizational performance (cf., Hope-Hailey et
al. 2005).
The second area receiving considerable attention related to
MNC staffing policies
and international assignee roles. The literature on staffing
policies and the use of
expatriates in MNCs goes back to early conceptual work by
Perlmutter (1969) and
Edström and Galbraith (1977) and given impetus by Tung’s
(1981) empirical
research. More recently, this area has seen a revival with
research on, for example,
how Japanese, Chinese and Korean MNCs staff their
international operations. That
this topic remains on the research agenda is perhaps testament
to an enduring
reality: That success in international business depends on
having the right person in
the right place at the right time. However, we found an
imbalance, in that this area

tends to concentrate on the reasons for rather than the outcomes
of staff transfers.
For example, the issue of return-on-investment from
international assignments has
only recently been addressed—we found two empirical articles,
both published in
the 2009 IJHRM special issue on global staffing (volume 20, no.
6). In answering
outcome-related questions, IHRM researchers may contribute to
the on-going
debate regarding the contribution of HR systems and activities
to organizational
performance.
Subsidiary level This level of analysis exemplifies the way in
which IHRM is
connected to the IB-related literature. As mentioned earlier, we
found a group of
articles dealing with the effect of staff transfers on knowledge
transfer across units,
and the development of social capital. These articles are written
at the cross-section
between IHRM research and the large and still growing work on
social capital
(Kostova and Roth 2003) and knowledge transfer/sharing in

MNCs (Minbaeva and
Michailova 2004). Likewise, articles focusing on the transfer of
traditional HR
policies and/or practices tended to use the seminal integration-
responsiveness
framework (Prahalad and Doz 1987) in international business,
modified to examine
MNC standardisation and/or local responsiveness of subsidiary
HR practices
(Rosenzweig and Nohria 1994).
At the same time, though, the focus on subsidiary units mirrors
the research
concentration within the IB field on foreign direct investment.
While we found a
growing interest in different forms of international business
operations within this
theme, the dominant area was the HR implications of
international mergers and
123
acquisitions and international joint ventures—alternative forms
of foreign direct

investment to that of wholly-owned subsidiaries. Little is known
about the HRM
implications of other forms of foreign operations, despite a
research call made two
decades ago (Welch and Welch 1994). Basic international
business textbooks cover
ethical issues and company responses related to employment in
subcontracted firms,
yet in spite of extensive discussion on the topic in society our
analysis found only
one article that dealt with such an activity from a HRM
perspective (Al-Husan and
James 2003).
3.2 Research Stream 3: Non-Empirical Articles
Underlying our querying of the continued focus on international
assignees are
concerns related to theoretical development. As mentioned
above, articles
pertaining to this stream were separated out and examined as a
way of determining
the extent to which the field was overcoming its ‘theory deficit
characteristic’
(Björkman et al. 2012). The several conceptual frameworks in

this category related
to various components involved in global staff deployment (see
e.g., Harvey and
Buckley 1997; Welch 2003; Oddou et al. 2009). There was a
noticeable dearth of
work that attempts to build a comprehensive framework of the
international
assignment process; that is, linking inputs (such as the purpose,
nature and type of
assignment); on-assignment factors (the themes in Table 2); and
proximate and
distant outputs (for example, individual career pathing, staff
retention, and unit- and
MNC-level knowledge and skills transfer), interacting over
time. As Klein et al.
(1999, p. 243) comment, multilevel theorizing ‘‘acknowledges
the influence of the
organizational context on individuals’ actions and perceptions
and [authors’
emphasis] the influence of individuals’ actions and perceptions
on the organiza-
tional context’’.
Mendenhall (1999, pp. 68, 84) called for paradigmatic
integration in expatriate

management research to overcome what he referred to as
‘balkanization’—the
dominance of the logical positivist paradigm that ‘‘may not
have provided a
complete comprehension of the phenomenon of expatriation’’.
He concluded that
integration of methodological paradigms would overcome what
he saw as a
tendency to ‘‘conduct research studies that are merely
variations of old, well-worn
themes’’. Perhaps the increase in the use of qualitative and
mixed methods we
identified is indicative that IHRM scholars are endeavouring to
utilize the wider
range of methodological approaches. It should be noted that the
bias toward the
logical positivist paradigm is not unique to IHRM.
4 Research Implications
The content analysis presented in this article provides the first
published systematic
and thematic analysis of the field of IHRM. It was a useful
exercise in that it enabled
us to take stock. The process of sorting articles into research

streams and categories
facilitated the highlighting of areas of research concentration—
along with topics or
themes that have received partial or minimal attention and
aspects that are
123
seemingly neglected. We acknowledge that our analysis is
confined to articles
published in five IB journals over a specified time period and
does therefore not
provide a total picture of IHRM research, nor do we identify
articles in other outlets
that have influenced IHRM thinking. However, our mapping
exercise represents a
reasonable picture of the overall evolution of the field itself,
given the number of
articles examined over a 21 year period in the major IB outlets
used by IHRM
scholars. A further content analysis using a more diverse range
of journals and
books, over a longer timeframe, would be a worthwhile follow-

up exercise.
While perhaps not a surprising finding for those working within
the field, the
analysis provides evidence that IHRM does not equal expatriate
management. The
challenge though is to overcome the current disjunction that has
given rise to the
misperception of the dominance of expatriation studies. Macro,
exogenous factors
are included in early conceptual models (such as that of Schuler
et al. 1993; Taylor
et al. 1996; Welch 1994). These frameworks, or elements
thereof, are frequently
cited but from our content analysis would appear to have been
largely ignored. As
Dabic et al. (2013) comment, the groundwork has been laid, but
there remains more
work to be done in order to develop a stronger theoretical base.
Refining and
extending earlier conceptual models can assist in knowledge
development by
providing continuity with the past while incorporating new and
novel discoveries
(Suddaby et al. 2011). But one cannot develop the field by only

keeping to well-lit
paths; or by varying well-worn themes, continuing to shape and
polish existing
conceptual building blocks (Mendenhall 1999; Suddaby 2010;
Corley and Gioia
2011).
As mentioned above, an obvious area would be that of HR
issues associated with
international subcontracting and outsourcing. Often, the arm’s
length nature of such
arrangements poses context-specific HR issues such as ensuring
adherence by
contractees to codes of conduct relating to work practices such
as health and safety,
and compliance with local labor laws and regulations. Other
concerns are whether
the HR department is involved in the assignment of staff to
oversee compliance, and
the provision of relevant skills training and knowledge transfer.
That is, what is the
role of IHRM in ensuring that the international suppliers and
even suppliers’
suppliers deliver the expected outcomes in an ethical and
socially responsible

manner? Strengthening the breadth of research focus may show
how all forms of
foreign operations have critical HR challenges and
consequences which may
involve, but not be limited to, international assignments. There
is the added
advantage of shifting the focus from the traditional expatriate to
HR issues
pertaining to other employee categories.
Early work into HRM issues highlighted the role of staff
transfers as a soft
control mechanism (Edström and Galbraith 1977). Expatriates
were expected to
transfer corporate values thus assisting the MNC in developing
informal control and
coordination of the global entity. Likewise, bringing subsidiary
employees into
headquarters operations was seen as important to such cultural
management. A
question worth posing is to what extent staff transfers continue
to play this role in
the current global context. Our analysis found limited attention
to the outcomes of

HR activities on MNC performance. Further work would assist
in identifying the
intangible contributions people make to corporate objectives
such as organizational
123
learning, dynamic capabilities, absorptive capacity, shared
values, social capital and
knowledge transfer as a result of staff transfers. Research is
also needed on the
implementation and impact of corporate-wide HR policies and
practices such as
performance management systems that, in addition to employee
performance,
include appraising local employees on their espoused values and
behaviours. While
there is some debate in the international management literature
about the viability
and desirability of corporate culture as a managerial tool, this
has not been reflected
in the IHRM literature we considered. Research into the HR
department might

consider its role in how MNCs ‘‘manage’’ their corporate
culture.
5 A Concluding Comment
Firms operating in the dynamic global environment constantly
make strategic
decisions, such as divesting operations in one country or
moving into new markets
and contexts. Each of these decisions has HR consequences. As
the work on social
capital and knowledge transfer reminds us, people are an
important resource. Thus,
managing the staffing process will remain an integral part of
what we define as
IHRM. We hope that the results of the content analysis
presented in this article will
encourage colleagues to move away from the well-worn paths
we identified into
new areas that will enhance the standing of the field within the
IB community.
Acknowledgments The authors would like to thank Dr. Marja
Tahvanainen for acting as the
independent coder. We would also like to thank the Editors and
the anonymous reviewers for their helpful
comments. The research was funded by the HSE Foundation.

Appendix: Details of the selected journals
• IJHRM was launched in 1990 with three issues; growing to 15
issues by 2010.
Topics range from IHRM to comparative studies of management
and HR, cross-
cultural management; single national HRM; and employee and
industrial
relations studies.
• JIBS is consistently ranked as the premier journal in the IB
field. It was founded
in 1970 and is the official journal of the Academy of
International Business.
JIBS is eclectic in terms of article topics, with the current
editors stressing its
inter-disciplinary focus. As with IJHRM, the number of volume
issues has
slowly increased over time—from a steady four issues per year,
rising to six in
2003; eight in 2008, and to nine in 2010.
• MIR is the oldest international management journal,
celebrating its fiftieth year
of publication in 2010. The journal now publishes six issues per
year. Articles
are rather eclectic in nature but fall within the stated editorial
aim of furthering

the field of International Management.
• JWB was founded in 1965. The journal’s original name was
Columbia Journal
of World Business, and it adopted its current name in 1997. It
accepts papers on
a range of topics and disciplines in IM/IB research. It
consistently publishes four
issues per year.
123
• Founded in 1992, IBR commenced as the Scandinavian
International Business
Review, but changed its name after its first year. It now
publishes six issues per
year, with a similar eclectic IB/IM scope of articles to MIR and
JWB. In 2003,
IBR became the official journal of the European International
Business
Association.
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The Place of International Human Resource Management in
International BusinessAbstractIntroductionMethodologyJournal
Selection and Time PeriodCompilation of the DatabaseArticle
CategorizationRound 1: Research StreamsResults of Round
1Round 2: Thematic CodingDiscussionResearch Stream 2:
MNC-Related TopicsResearch Stream 3: Non-Empirical
ArticlesResearch ImplicationsA Concluding
CommentAcknowledgmentsAppendix: Details of the selected
journalsReferences
OUTLINES FOR DEVELOPING A PHILOSOPHY TERM
PAPER
FROM YOUR SYLLABUS
Essay (33%)
You are required to write a philosophical essay of 4-5 pages,
double-
spaced. Your essay may cover or extend any topic or reading in
our
course. The following criteria will be used to evaluate your
essay:
1. Does the paper present a focused topic—one narrow enough
to consider the central question or theme slowly and with care?
2. How carefully and rigorously does the student read the texts
they've chosen for consideration?
3. Does the paper exemplify the qualities of reflection, rigor,

organization, readable prose, and creativity?
4. Does the paper cite at least one outside source (other than
what we have read in class) that has strong intellectual merit?
WHAT IS A PHILOSOPHICAL ESSAY?
Your final paper is meant to be a reflection on our interesting
work together this
semester. There are no strict rules for writing an essay in
Philosophy, but some
of the best rules of thumb are the criteria listed above and
below. Please use this
outline as your guide.
A philosophical essay is foremost a response to a primary text
or work of
philosophy. Great philosophical texts are to Philosophy like
elements are to
Chemistry or numbers are to Mathematics. The first indicator of
a good
philosophical paper is often that it is in a serious, sustained
conversation with a
great text.
In any case, your topic will need to be: (1) textual, or carefully
based on the
readings in our course and/or outside readings related to
philosophy and to your
topic; (2) rigorous; and (3) limited, so that the focus or scope of
the topic is not
too broad and can be treated with care and rigor.

2
POSSIBLE PAPER TOPICS
(1) Textual Interpretation
Closely consider a passage or text that we have read in this
course and offer a
scholarly interpretation of it.
(2) Write on a Question or Idea
Interrogate a philosophical theme or idea that you find
fascinating and worthy of
reflection. Be sure to link this question or idea to passages in
great philosophical
texts.
(3) Write on a Philosopher
Write about any one of the philosophers that we have read in
this course, or write
about the major themes or philosophical motifs posed by a
specific thinker. Once
again, be sure to link these ideas to passages in one or more of
the philosopher’s
texts.

(4) The Relevance of Philosophy
Write about the relevance or importance of a philosophical text
for a specific
social, historical, or political issue (i.e. How has Beauvoir’s
Second Sex shaped
contemporary feminism?)
(5) A Critique of a Text
If you choose to focus on a critique of a text, it is helpful first
to say yes to the
work at least three times! In other words, don’t give a hasty,
simple critique of
their work. Find the reason why these authors are eternal; only
then can you
begin to engage in an honest, critical dialogue with them.
CHOOSING INSPIRING TEXTS
You should note two things about writing an essay in the
humanities. First, we
tend to place much greater emphasis on reading and interpreting
primary texts
(i.e. Plato’s Republic) than on reading and interpreting a
secondary source (i.e.
How to Read Plato’s Republic).
3

Second, if you choose to use secondary sources, no online
sources other than
peer-reviewed academic articles should be cited unless
otherwise noted or
approved in advance. At the beginning of your research, it may
be helpful to use
the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
(http://www.iep.utm.edu) or the Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy (http://plato.stanford.edu/) for a
basic overview or
summary of a book or topic. These sites have peer-reviewed,
introductory, and
accessible essays on many philosophical topics. Notice that
these articles also
have extensive bibliographies at the bottom of the page for
further independent
research.
In addition to these peer-reviewed websites and primary texts, it
can
sometimes be helpful to use an online database for scholarly
articles. The
most commonly used library database for philosophical journal
articles is
JSTOR (Full Text). This database offers more specialized or
focused
discussion on specific philosophical texts. It can also be help if
you find
yourself worried about how to write a philosophy essay in
general. You
can read many examples here of good philosophy essays that
will give
you a template for how to write your own essay.
Always remember: It is best to stick to primary texts or “great

books” as your
references. Read your primary texts the most carefully and
thoughtfully and cite
them.
Finally, remember that any ideas or quotations taken from
sources beyond
yourself must be cited with a footnote and included in your
bibliography.
Failure to cite references is a form of plagiarism and must be
reported to
the Academic Judiciary Committee (see required “Academic
Integrity”
statement).
Engaging and reflecting upon philosophical texts that have
proven the test of
time, articles that have been peer-reviewed by academics,
occasional newspaper
articles from so-called papers of record (Washington Post, New
York Times), or
cherished works from other areas of humanities such as the arts
(film, music,
visual art, literature, etc.), is a way of having a more thoughtful,
more interesting,
and more thorough discussion. It democratizes the process since
many of us
have access to these works. It avoids abstract philosophical or
moral claims. And
it moves us away from personal opinions like "I feel" or "I
believe" to things that
are regarded excellent both publicly and through the test of
time. Such works are
not merely to be regarded as ultimate authorities, of course, but
they are helpful,
often inspiring or even arresting bases for intelligent public

discourse.
4
THINGS YOU WANT TO AVOID IN YOUR WRITING (IN
GENERAL)
• Avoid empty, generic and generalizing introductory statements
and
conclusions.
• Avoid dictionary definitions. Philosophy is more nuanced and
less certain
about the definition of something. In many situations in Plato,
for instance,
we have seen that an attempt to define something like justice or
virtue
produces several competing definitions rather than one firm or
fixed one.
Dictionaries are never authoritative because they lead us to the
same
problem of many, competing definitions. However, if you are
interested in
doing philosophical or etymological work on a specific term, we
can work
together using the Oxford English Dictionary (our most

philological English
dictionary) or various lexicons in other languages.
• Avoid personal language like “I feel” or “I believe.” Our
“beliefs” are simply
things that were often given to us by someone else for a specific
purpose.
We too often falsely think that they are unique to us or our own.
Turn your
question toward what something is or the subject under
discussion rather
than toward false individualism and deceptive egoism.
• Avoid writing a biography or history paper. A philosophy
paper is not a
report about the life or biography of a philosopher. Some
biographical and
historical details may be significant, but try to focus your
attention on the
philosopher’s text(s) or philosophy.
• Avoid absolute certainty. Ask questions instead of repeating
dogma. A
good philosophical essay rarely begins or concludes with
absolute
certainty. Try beginning with uncertainty rather than false
presumptions or
generalizing statements. Remember that philosophy is a method
of
questioning and opening ourselves up to questions, not a method
of
concluding and resolving and binding down (i.e. religion, law,
etc.).

FINAL NOTE
These are simply suggestions. The main goal now is for each of
you to slow
down, reflect, limit your focus, and write about what you find
most compelling,
pressing, or interesting among the work we've read and
discussed. This "slowing
down" or "pause" is especially key to philosophical writing.
Thinking, as
Descartes might have said, is what takes place while reflecting
alone and
meditating in silence, or taking a walk in nature. Others think
that philosophy
takes place in dialogue or serious conversation with another
person about the
meaning of life.
5
Philosophical writing itself can also help us think. It moves us
not from point A to
point B like in a scientific article or a how-to manual, but rather
in a circular or
downward path where your question will likely not lead to a
simple answer but
rather only to more questions. You'll get easily overwhelmed,
misguided, or even
make a false choice if you try to do too much. It bears

repeating: Don’t take on
too much.
The important thing is to write about something interesting,
even urgent, either
for you or for us as a society, perhaps something that's come up
over the course
of the semester. Anything that relates to the class is very
welcome, as long as it's
limited enough (not too broad) to be rigorous, and is textual (is
in serious dialog
with one or more of the texts we have read).
Right now the task is to reflect, perhaps look over your notes,
listen to a moving
piece of music, or even read a (good) newspaper, and find a
topic interesting to
you. I think it's very important to first give you an open space
to do that, lest we
become unreflective, rule-following cogs in the machine of the
university.
And finally, don't stress out. Remember that this is not your
thesis or major life's
work; this is a term paper meant to be an interesting and
hopefully enjoyable way
to respond to the course. Take meaningful writing breaks, get
plenty of rest,
including short naps, and turn off your internet and your cell
phone.
I look forward to reading your work. As Plato often said to his
students:
Good luck!

Chapter 11: Work, organization and job design
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completing this chapter you should be able to define these
key concepts. You should also understand:
· Work design methodology
· Changes in the nature of work
· Work system design
· Process planning
· Smart working
· Flexible working
· High-performance working
· Lean manufacturing
· Organization design
· Job design
Introduction
Work, organization, and job design are three distinct but closely
associated processes that establish what work is done in
organizations and how it is done. Work design deals with the
ways in which things are done in the work system of a business
by teams and individuals. Organization design is concerned with
deciding how organizations should be structured. Job design is
about establishing what people in individual jobs or roles are
there to do. Although these three activities are dealt with
separately in this chapter they share one purpose – to ensure
that the organization’s work systems and structure operate
effectively, make the best use of people in their jobs and roles
and take account of the needs of people at work.
In theory, to achieve that purpose, work, organization and job
design function sequentially. The work system is designed to
meet the specific needs of the business and to deliver value to
its customers or clients. An organization structure or system
(not all organizations are rigidly structured) has to be developed
to enable the work system to operate. The structure is made up

of jobs or roles (there is a distinction, which will be explained
later) that have to be designed in ways that will maximize the
extent to which they can be carried out effectively and provide
intrinsic motivation, ie motivation from the work itself.
In practice, the processes involved can run concurrently – the
work system will involve deciding how the work should be
organized, and both the work system and organization design
processes will define what sort of jobs or roles are required. At
the same time, job design considerations will affect how the
work is organized and how the work system functions. This
chapter deals with each aspect of design separately, but it
should be remembered that the processes interlink and
overlap.Work design
Work design is the creation of systems of work and a working
environment that enhance organizational effectiveness and
productivity, ensure that the organization becomes ‘a great
place in which to work’ and are conducive to the health, safety
and well-being of employees. Work involves the exertion of
effort and the application of knowledge and skills to achieve a
purpose. Systems of work are the combined processes, methods
and techniques used to get work done. The work environment
comprises the design of jobs, working conditions and the ways
in which people are treated at work by their managers and co-
workers as well as the work system. Work design is closely
associated with organization and job design in that the latter is
conducted within the context of the system of work and the
work environment.
To understand the meaning of work design it is necessary first
to appreciate what is happening to the world of work and next
to review its history.
What is happening to work
The key changes in the contextual and external environment
surrounding the world of work have been set out clearly by
Parker et al (2001). They are:
· a shift away from large-scale industrial production, with a

dramatic decline in manufacturing jobs and rise in service work;
· partly as a consequence of this, an increase in customer-facing
roles involving some form of emotional behaviour – the
requirement for employees to express positive emotions in the
way in which they interact with customers;
· significant shifts in the demographics of the workforce in the
shape of an increased proportion of women, greater ethnic
diversity, more educated employees and an ageing workforce;
· growth in the number of employees engaged in ‘knowledge
work’ – for example, professional services and new product and
service development;
· the requirement for a greater variety of products and services
and flexibility and agility in responding to customer needs and
increased global competition;
· developments in technology affecting the degree to which jobs
are involved in IT and become dependent on it;
· shifts from traditional, office or factory-based working to
more flexible alternatives, including homeworking;
· a significant increase in the number of employers that an
individual employee expects to work for during his or her
career.
Work design – a short history
Work design began with the concept of the division of labour
originated by Adam Smith (1776). Much later came
‘Taylorism’, the scientific management movement pioneered by
Taylor (1911), which was based on the belief that the most
efficient way to do tasks was to remove the responsibility for
how to do the work from the individual employee to engineers
or managers. The next step was ‘Fordism’, the moving assembly
line introduced by Henry Ford in 1914. Thereafter, the practice
of work simplification became embedded in organizations and
to a large extent still exists.
The first move away from this situation was provided by the
concept of job enrichment popularized by Herzberg (1968: 83),
who referred to it as ‘vertical job loading’. His definition of the

principles and motivators involved is set out in Table 11.1. This
was reinforced by job design theory (Hackman and Oldham,
1974).
Table 11.1: Vertical job loading (job enrichment) principles and
motivators involved
Principles
Motivators involved
Removing some controls while retaining accountability
Responsibility and personal achievement
Increasing the accountability of individuals for own work
Responsibility and personal achievement
Giving a person a complete natural unit of work (module,
division, area, and so on)
Responsibility and recognition
Granting additional authority to employees in their activity; job
freedom
Responsibility, achievement and recognition
Making periodic reports directly available to the workers
themselves rather than to supervisors
Internal recognition
Introducing new and more difficult tasks not previously handled
Growth and learning
Assigning individuals specific or specialized tasks, enabling
them to become experts
Responsibility, growth and advancement
SOURCE: Herzberg (1968: 83)
More recently, the notion of ‘smart working’ has emerged.
Essentially, this means managing the work environment in order
to release employees’ energy and drive business performance.
Smart working, as described in detail later, has been the subject
of extensive research conducted by the CIPD (2008).
However, before examining the notion of smart working it is
necessary to remember that it takes place within the system of
work, and approaches to work system design are therefore
examined first.

Work system design
A system is a set of practices or activities that fit together and
interact to achieve a purpose. Work system design is concerned
with how the various processes required to make a product or
provide a service should operate. It deals with the set of related
activities that combine to give a result that customers want. The
structure of the system describes the relations between different
operations.
A work system may be centred on activities such as
manufacturing, chemical processing, information processing,
supply, distribution, transport, the provision of public services
or customer service. There is usually a choice between different
processes within the work system. As the design of the work
system affects costs, quality and productivity it is important to
provide the best match between the product or service and the
process used to make or deliver it.Process-centred organizations
Process-centred organizations avoid focusing too closely on the
design of a rigid work system but instead concentrate on the
stream of products or services required and the processes
required to ensure that work flows smoothly to the ultimate
satisfaction of the customer or client. They have the following
features:
· The focus is on horizontal processes that cut across
organizational boundaries.
· The overriding objective will be to maintain a smooth flow of
work between functions and to achieve synergy by pooling
resources from different functions in task forces or project
teams.
· The organization will not be based on the old hierarchical
‘command and control’ structure, ie one that consists of a
functional structure with a number of different disciplines.
Instead it will be a ‘lattice’, or ‘matrix’ organization (a lattice
organization is one with a non-hierarchical, flat structure where
the emphasis is on horizontal processes, the elimination of
boundaries between functions and teamwork; a matrix
organization is one that consists of a functional structure with a

number of different disciplines and a project structure
consisting of project teams drawn from the disciplines);
· There may still be designated functions for, say,
manufacturing, sales and distribution, but the emphasis will be
on how these areas work together on multifunctional projects to
deal with demands such as product/market development.
· Belief in and reliance on teamwork.
· Expansion of traditional jobs and increased emphasis on
flexible roles, with employees making decisions and dealing
with all types of customer issues.
· Access to all types of information and knowledge throughout
the organization.
· Quality and continuous improvement will be regarded as a
common responsibility shared between managers and staff from
each function.Process planning
Work system design covers the planning of processes such as
flexible manufacturing systems (computer numerical control
machines controlled by a central computer that allows fast and
easy changes between products), and supply chain management
(the control of products from the original suppliers of materials
through to the final customers). It may involve facility layout –
the physical arrangement of equipment, offices, rooms, work
stations (including ‘hot-desks’ – individual desks shared
between several people) and other resources.
Process planning may determine how manufacturing or the
provision of a service should be divided into a series of stages
such as machines in a production line, each of which uses
resources and adds value.Requirements to be met in work
system design
When designing a work system it is necessary to see that it will:
· fit work requirements for efficiency and flexibility;
· ensure the smooth flow of processes or activities, or of
materials from supplier to customer;
· facilitate the effective use of resources and the control of
waste;
· as far as possible enable employees to gain fulfilment from

their work by providing scope for variety, challenge and
autonomy;
· encourage cooperative effort through teamworking;
· provide a good work environment in terms of working
conditions;
· take account of the need to provide a healthy and safe system
of work (‘build safety into the system’) bearing in mind the
need to minimize stress and pay attention to ergonomic
considerations in the design of equipment and work stations to
eliminate or at least significantly reduce the risk of such
conditions as repetitive strain injury;
· take account of environmental considerations;
· operate generally in accordance with the principles of ‘smart
working’ as described below.
Smart working
As defined by the CIPD (2008: 4), smart working is: ‘An
approach to organizing work that aims to drive greater
efficiency and effectiveness in achieving job outcomes through
a combination of flexibility, autonomy and collaboration, in
parallel with optimizing tools and working environments for
employees.’ The characteristics of smart working as established
by the CIPD research were:
· self-management – a high degree of autonomy and a
philosophy of empowerment;
· the use of virtual teams or work groups;
· focus on outcome-based indicators of performance;
· high-performance working;
· flexibility in work locations and hours;
· use of more advanced communications technology;
· hot-desking and working from home;
· ways of working that are underpinned by or drive high-trust
working relationships;
· alignment of smart working with business objectives.
Typical smart working arrangements identified by the CIPD
research include flexible working, high-performance working,

‘lean’ production and designing jobs in which there is a higher
degree of freedom to act. The role of each of those
arrangements in work design is described below.
Flexible working
Flexible working is a pattern of working practice or working
hours that deviates from the standard or normal arrangement.
The aim is to provide for greater operational flexibility,
improve the use of employees’ skills and capacities, increase
productivity and reduce employment costs. Flexible working has
become increasingly important as a means of enhancing
operational effectiveness.
Flexible working means reconsidering traditional employment
patterns. This could include operational flexibility,
multiskilling, the use of subcontracting and outsourcing, or
introducing working arrangements such as flexible hours, job
sharing and homeworking.Forms of operational flexibility
Operational flexibility refers to flexibility in the ways in which
work is carried out. The term is sometimes extended to include
financial flexibility. The three forms of operational flexibility
are:
· Functional flexibility so that employees can be redeployed
quickly and smoothly between activities and tasks. It may
require multiskilling – workers who possess and can apply a
number of skills, for example, both mechanical and electrical
engineering, or multitasking – workers who carry out a number
of different tasks in a work team.
· Structural flexibility in a ‘flexible firm’ where the core of
permanent employees is supplemented by a peripheral group of
part-time employees, employees on short- or fixed-term
contracts or subcontracted workers, as described by Doeringer
and Priore (1971) and Atkinson (1984).
· Numerical flexibility, which is associated with structural
flexibility and means that the number of employees can be
quickly and easily increased or decreased in line with even
short-term changes in the level of demand for labour.

Financial flexibility provides for pay levels to reflect the state
of supply and demand in the external labour market and also
means the use of flexible pay systems that facilitate either
functional or numerical flexibility.Multiskilling
Multiskilling takes place when workers acquire through
experience and training a range of different skills they can
apply when carrying out different tasks (multitasking). This
means that they can be used flexibly, transferring from one task
to another as the occasion demands.
A multiskilling strategy will mean providing people with a
variety of experience through, for example, moving them
between different jobs or tasks (job rotation) and secondments,
and by making arrangements for them to acquire new skills
through training. It typically includes setting up flexible work
teams, the members of which can be deployed on all or many of
the team’s tasks. A flexible employee resourcing policy can
then be established that enables the organization to redeploy
people rapidly to meet new demands. This implies abandoning
the traditional job description that prescribes the tasks to be
carried and replacing it with a role profile, which specifies the
range of knowledge and skills that the role holder needs.Job-
sharing
This is an arrangement in which two employees share the work
of one full-time position, dividing pay and benefits between
them according to the time that each of them works. Job-sharing
can mean splitting days or weeks or, less frequently, working
alternate weeks. The advantages of job-sharing include reduced
employee turnover and absenteeism, because it suits the needs
of individuals. Greater continuity results: because if one half of
the job-sharing team is ill or leaves, the sharer will continue
working for at least half the time. Job-sharing also means that a
wider employment pool can be tapped for those who cannot
work full-time but want permanent employment. The
disadvantages are the administrative costs involved and the risk
of responsibility being divided.Hot-desking
Hot-desking means that individual desks are shared between

several people who use them at different times. Those involved
do not therefore have a permanent work station. This is
convenient for the organization but not everyone likes
it.Homeworking
Home-based employees can carry out such roles as consultants,
analysts, designers or programmers, or they can undertake
administrative work. The advantages are flexibility to respond
rapidly to fluctuations in demand, reduced overheads and lower
employment costs if the homeworkers are self-employed (care,
however, has to be taken to ensure that they are regarded as
self-employed for Income Tax and National Insurance
purposes).Flexible hour arrangements
Flexible hour arrangements can be included in a flexibility plan
in one or more of the following ways:
· flexible daily hours – these may follow an agreed pattern day
by day according to typical or expected workloads (eg flexitime
systems);
· flexible weekly hours – providing for longer weekly hours to
be worked at certain peak periods during the year;
· flexible daily and weekly hours – varying daily or weekly
hours or a combination of both to match the input of hours to
the required output. Such working times, unlike daily or weekly
arrangements, may fluctuate between a minimum and a
maximum;
· compressed working weeks in which employees work fewer
than the five standard days;
· annual hours – scheduling employee hours on the basis of the
number of hours to be worked, with provisions for the increase
or reduction of hours in any given period, according to the
demand for goods or services.
In addition there is the pernicious arrangement of zero-hours
contracts in which an employer does not guarantee the employee
a fixed number of hours per week. Rather, the employee is
expected to be on-call and receive pay only for hours worked.
Such contracts are most common in retail, hospitality and
restaurants.

High-performance working
High-performance working was defined by Combs et al (2006)
as the sum of the processes, practices and policies put in place
by employers to enable employees to perform to their full
potential. They referred to employee participation and flexible
working arrangements as examples of such systems that have a
direct impact on ways of working and therefore flow through to
job design.
Sung and Ashton (2005) defined high-performance work
practices as a set or ‘bundle’ of 35 complementary work
practices covering three broad areas:
· High employee involvement work practices – eg self-directed
teams, quality circles and sharing/access to company
information.
· Human resource practices – eg sophisticated recruitment
processes, performance appraisals, mentoring and work
redesign.
· Reward and commitment practices – eg various financial
rewards, family-friendly policies, job rotation and flexible
hours.
Lean manufacturing
Lean manufacturing or lean production, often known simply as
‘Lean’, is a process improvement methodology developed by
Toyota in Japan. Lean focuses on reducing waste and ensuring
the flow of production in order to deliver value to customers. It
concentrates initially on the design of the process so that waste
can be minimized during manufacture. It then examines
operations in order to identify opportunities to improve the flow
of production, remove wasteful practices and engage in
continuous improvement. Various tools are available such as
‘FiveS’, which is a workplace methodology that uses a list of
five words starting with the letter ‘S’ (sorting, straightening,
systematic cleaning, standardizing and sustaining). Reference to
these enables a dialogue to take place with employees on how

work should be done.
But as noted by the CIPD (2008: 11), the success of Lean
depends not so much on the tools but on its approach to work.
Lean is implemented by communities of people who carry out
and supervise the work and may include stakeholders such as
customers. Lean team members are encouraged to think flexibly
and be adaptable to change. They have a sense of ownership of
what they do and achieve.
CASE STUDIES
Work organization: W L Gore
As described by the CIPD (2008: 25–26), W L Gore, which is
best known for its GORE-TEX® fabrics, has a non-hierarchical,
flat organization structure (a ‘lattice’ structure). There are no
traditional organization charts, no ranks or job titles and no
chains of command nor predetermined channels of
communication. What is important when recruiting new people
is that they have the right fit with Gore’s culture. There are no
rigid job specifications. Instead, associates make a commitment
to contribute individually and collectively to work areas or
projects according to their skills. Individuals are encouraged to
take an interest in a wide variety of job areas or projects.
Provided the core responsibilities within their role are carried
out, associates can then stretch and build on their role to suit
their interests, aspirations and the business needs. Gore’s
‘lattice’ structure gives associates the opportunity to use their
own judgement, take ownership of work areas and access the
resources they need for projects to be successful. Gore’s core
values and ways of working are built on the principles of ‘smart
working’. Its unique culture, which fosters creativity, self-
motivation, participation and equality, has proved to be a key
contributor to associate satisfaction and retention.
Flexible working: B&Q
Flexible working arrangements have been extended at B&Q in
association with its diversity strategy. The main components of
its flexible working policy are:

· term-time contracts available to parents and grandparents with
children/grandchildren up to the age of 16 years (18 if the child
is disabled);
· job-share for employees who do not want – or are unable – to
work full-time; online job-share register available to help
individuals find a job-share partner;
· staggered start/finish times, allowing for personal
commitments/interests;
· part-time hours;
· split shifts to fit in with employees’ personal commitments;
· dual store contracts, allowing employees to work at more than
one location;
· one employee/two roles, allowing employees to develop new
and different skills, benefit from multiskilling and work in more
than one area of the business;
· home/remote working, allowing employees to work from home
or away from their normal workplace on an occasional basis;
· career breaks of 3 to 12 months can be taken for any reason;
· child care vouchers available across the organization;
· maternity, paternity and adoption policies enhanced above the
statutory minimum;
· shared maternity/paternity leave; unpaid additional leave can
be taken by father/partner where both parents work for B&Q
and mother returns to work;
· IVF leave: one week paid time off for IVF treatment;
· paid compassionate or carer’s leave: one week off per
year.Organization design
Organization design is the process of deciding how
organizations should be structured in terms of the ways in
which the responsibility for carrying out the overall task is
allocated to individuals and groups of people and how the
relationships between them function. The aim is to ensure that
people work effectively together to achieve the overall purpose
of the organization. The basic question of ‘Who does what?’ is
answered by line managers but HR specialists are also involved
in their capacity of helping the business to make the best use of

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